You’re staying in Disney accommodation but do you need a dining plan? It’s a question everyone from the UK faces when putting together their Disney holiday and staying on site. Before you start working up an appetite walking 20,000 steps a day you need to decide whether to pay for a plan or pay as you go. Let’s tuck into the dining plan costs, convenience, and planning to answer: is it worth worth it for UK visitors?
What are Disney Dining Plans?
Disney dining plans are only available to guests who have chosen to stay in a Disney resort hotel. If you’re staying off site, dining plans are not something that you need to consider. Two different dining plan options are available to UK guests aged three and over.
1: The Quick-Service Dining Plan
The cheapest option available to buy. Quick-Service is Disney Jargon for placing a food order in a restaurant, waiting while it is prepared and then taking it to a seat you choose to eat. It’s like ordering in Mc Donald’s or Five Guys.
Reservations are not required; you simply head to the restaurant of your choice when you are hungry. It is possible to order your food on the My Disney App, and some restaurants encourage you to do this. Pinocchio Haus in Magic Kingdom is one of them.
Quick-Service food is varied, and different venues serve different foods. You can typically find burgers or chicken strips on most menus. Quick-service is a fast dining experience offering a convenient way to eat and maximise your time in the theme parks.
The Quick-Service Plan includes
- 1 Resort Refillable Mug for the duration of your stay
- For each night you stay in resort you get:
- 2 quick service meals with a non-alcoholic or alcoholic drink for over 21’s.
- 1 snack
There is also a children’s plan which includes the same options but costs less than the adults. Children aged 3-9 using the dining plan usually must order from the children’s menus.
2: The Disney Dining Plan
Disney use the term table-service to describe one of the meals, which is Disney jargon for being seated for a waiter service meal. The level of formality and experience varies with table-service meals, but in general think Frankie and Benny’s style dining with Disney theming, service and magic. If you are at a table service buffet, think Toby Carvery style dining on a larger scale, with Disney theming, service, and magic.
Disney encourage reservations for table-service dining, and we agree. You can make reservations up to 60 days in advance of your holiday. Making reservations at the 60-day point is wise.
Table-service meals include lunch or dinner, a pudding, and an alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink. You can use your table-service credit for breakfast character experiences at places like Ohana in the Polynesian resort, which is very popular and a must for Stitch fans.
Tipping is expected with table-service dining, and this is not included in the cost of the dining plan, so just remember you need to add that into budgeting.
The Disney Dining Plan includes:
- 1 Resort Refillable Mug for the duration of your stay.
- For each night you stay in resort you get:
- 1 quick-service meal, including a non-alcoholic or alcoholic drink for those over 21
- 1 table service meal, including a pudding and a non-alcoholic or alcoholic drink for those over 21
- 1 snack
A children’s option is available, with the same inclusions in child size and excluding the alcoholic drink option. Children aged 3-9 have to eat from children’s menus.
Disney Dining Plans vs. Paying Out of Pocket
Is it worth it and what does a dining plan add to your Disney World holiday? Dining Plans bring peace of mind if you are concerned about budgeting food for your trip, but the cost to pay before your holiday is high. Offering convenience and reassurance that everything is covered is it a cost worth paying for peace of mind? Importantly, will you be getting value for money paying in advance? Disney holidays cost a lot, so the dining plan needs to work for you. Let’s do the maths.
Dining plan costs per night in 2025 for UK guests
Quick-Service Dining Plan: £45.99 per night for adults; £19.99 per night for children
Disney Dining Plan: £78.99 per night for adults; £24,99 per night for children.
Choosing which plan is right for you, or even whether a plan is the right choice for your 2025 holiday, needs research. That’s why we have cost comparisons to share, showing you real examples of paying as you go (including tax) in the Disney Resorts and parks at Walt Disney World vs using the Dining Plans. This is the best way answer the question is the Disney Dining Plan worth it financially.
It is worth noting that your day-to-day cost for food will vary, but quick service meals are usually below $14.99 (plus tax) which is less than £11.60.
Note: Disney show prices without tax, so when you purchase your meals tax is added on. Across most of the Disney Parks this is 6.5% which is the tax rate in Orange County where most of the Disney Parks are. Some resorts like the All Stars Resorts have a higher tax rate of 7.5% as they are in Osceola County. We break down the costs to show you including tax in our prices.
A word on Resort Mugs
The resort refillable mug is a one-time cost of around $23 with tax for the duration of your stay in a Disney resort. If you don’t decide to purchase a dining plan, consider a mug. To work out the cost per day you need to divide the cost of the mug by the number of nights you are staying. We have added £1.30 to the cost comparisons below working on a 14-night stay in a Disney resort.
Cost comparison of Quick-Service Dining Plans vs. paying as you go
Adult
| Disney Quick Service Dining Plan = £45.99 | Pay As You Go Cost = £38.04 |
| 1 quick service meal and 1 drink | 4 chicken strips and fries from Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café in Magic Kingdom = $10.99 (plus tax) = $11.70 = £9.10 Drink: Fountain Drink $4.49 (plus tax) = $4.78 = £3.80 Total =£12.90 |
| 1 quick service meal and 1 drink | Bacon cheeseburger and chips from All Star Music = $13.49 (plus tax) = $14.50 = £11.30 Drink: Bud Light Lager $9.25 (plus tax) = $9.94 = £7.75 Total = £19.05 |
| 1 snack | Dole Whip Orange Cup = $5.79 (plus tax) = $6.16 = £4.79 |
| Resort Refillable Mug | $21.99 (plus tax) = $23.14 = £18.20 (£1.30 per day over 14 nights) |
Child
| Disney Quick Service Dining Plan = £19.99 | Pay As You Go Cost = £20.16 |
| 1 quick service meal with drink included | Hollywood Studios: ABC Commissary – Kids’ grilled ham and cheese sandwich with crisps, a mandarin and a chocolate milk – $7.79 (plus tax) = $8.30 = £6.46 |
| 1 quick service meal with drink included | Disney’s Pop Century Resort – kids’ cheeseburger with a side of fries and a side of apple slices and a carton of Minute Maid apple juice $8.49 (plus tax) = $9.04 = £7.03 |
| 1 snack | Werther’s Original Caramel Apple $6.49 (plus tax)= $6.91 = £5.37 |
| Resort Refillable Mug | $21.99 (plus tax) = $23.14 = £18.20 (£1.30 per day over 14 nights) |
Is a quick-service plan worth it?
A Quick-Service dining plan is not worth it for UK guests according to the maths. On this day, this one adult would be paying £7.95 more with the plan rather than paying for meals as they go. It is a high cost for convenience.
The children’s option would save 17p using the dining plan rather than paying as you go. However, one adult and one child are £7.78 out of profit adding their dining plan costs together. This will likely be the result most days with Quick-Service Dining Plans for Brits. With the average Quick-Service meal costing less than $14.99 (plus tax) there are not great savings to be had, even when you take into account the drink with the meal.
Consider your alcohol intake and whether you want to eat burgers and meat your whole holiday to maximise credit value. Maximising the value of your dining credits is essential if you want value for money when choosing a quick-service plan.
Cost comparison of Disney Dining Plans vs. paying as you go
Adult
| Disney Dining Plan = £78.99 | Pay As You Go = £66.10 |
| 1 quick-service meal | Magic Kingdom – Pinocchio Village Haus – Pepperoni Flatbread $12.99 (plus tax) = $13.83 = £10.75 Drink: Simply Orange $5.29 (plus tax) = $5.63 = £4.38 Total = £15.13 |
| 1 table-service meal – 1 main and 1 desert | Animal Kingdom – Yak and yeti – Chicken Tikka Masala $27.99 (plus tax) = $29.80 = £23.20 New York Cheesecake – $12.99 (plus tax) = $13.83 = £10.75 Saritori Pinot Grigio 11 (plus tax) = $11.72 = £9.12 Total = £43.07 |
| 1 snack or drink | Amorette’s Patisserie Over the Bayou Cake Bar $8.00 (plus tax) = $8.52 = £6.60 |
| 1 resort refillable mug | $21.99 (plus tax) = $23.14 = £18.20 (£1.30 per day over 14 nights) |
Child
| Disney Dining Plan = £24.99 | Pay As You Go = £22.45 |
| 1 quick-service meal | Disney’s Art of Animation – Chicken and vegetables with pasta plus a minute maid apple juice $7.59 (plus tax) = $8.08 = £6.28 |
| 1 table-service meal | Animal Kingdom – Yak and yeti – Grilled Chicken Breast with two sides (corn and white rice) and an apple juice or milk $11.99 (plus tax) = $12.76 = £9.92 |
| 1 snack or drink | Frozen Kilimanjaro Cooler Glacier $5.99 (plus tax) = $6.37 = £4.95 |
| 1 resort refillable mug | $21.99 (plus tax) = $23.14 = £18.20 (£1.30 per day over 14 nights) |
Is the Disney Dining Plan worth it?
The Disney Dining Plan is not financially worth it in this scenario. An adult overpays £12.89 using the dining plan rather than paying as you go, for the same food. The child’s plan costs £2.49 more than paying as you go. In this example the Disney Dining Plan costs one adult and one child £15.38 more than paying as you go.
With that said, the dining plan does not only cover table-service restaurants like Yak and Yeti, it also covers some character dining experiences. The cost of paying as you go for character dining experiences is higher, so let’s see if using a character dining experience for the table-service option affects the value.
Does Character Dining add value?
Adult
| Disney Dining Plan = £45.99 | Pay As You Go = £82.55 |
| 1 quick-service meal | EPCOT – Connections Eatery – Nicoise-style Salad with Seared Tuna $12.99 = $13.83 (including tax) = £10.80 |
| 1 table-service meal | Chef Mickey (character dining buffet) $66 = $70.29 (including tax) = £54.89 Bottle of Bud $8.75 = $9.30 (including tax) = £7.26 Total = £62.15 |
| 1 snack or drink | Hollywood Studios, Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge – Milk Stand – Tenoo Swirl Crunchies Creal = $9.99 = $10.63 (including tax) = £8.30 |
| 1 resort refillable mug | $21.99 (plus tax) = $23.14 = £18.20 (£1.30 per day over 14 nights) |
Child
| Disney Dining Plan = £24.99 | Pay As You Go = £47.84 |
| 1 quick-service meal | EPCOT – Connections Eatery – chicken strips with a mandarin and French fries and a low-fat milk $8.49 = $9 (including tax) = £7 |
| 1 table-service meal | Chef Mickey (character dining buffet) $41 = $43.70 (including tax) = £34.15 |
| 1 snack or drink | Hollywood Studios, Kat Saka’s Kettle – Outpost Popcorn Mix – $6.49 – $6.90 (including tax) = £5.39 |
| 1 resort refillable mug | $21.99 (plus tax) = $23.14 = £18.20 (£1.30 per day over 14 nights) |
Is character dining adding value?
Yes. There is £35.56 saving using the dining plan including character dining as the table-service option for adults. For children, there is a £22.85 saving using the dining plan with character dining as the table service option. That is a combined saving for one adult and one child of £58.41 when using a character dining 1 credit option for their table-service meal.
You will make more savings choosing character dining for lunch and dinner, but you will still make savings on the dining plan if you use your table-service credit for a character breakfast.
2 Credit Character Dining Experiences
Some character dining experiences cost 2 table service dining credits. This includes eating at Cinderella’s Table for example. Financially, this will not bring the same value for money as you effectively loose a table-service meal. If you double up table-service meals throughout your holiday, the dining plan will not have the same financial returns.
Determining if it’s worth the cost
Here are our top questions to ask yourself to work out whether a dining plan will save you money:
1: Disney adult portions are larger than UK portions; so, ask yourselves how much food you are likely to eat? If you don’t eat two large meals and a snack every day, you may not get value for money.
2: Are you planning to just stay at Disney? If you are heading to other parks and places regularly, you are likely to want to eat out there so the dining plan is not worth the cost for you.
3: Do you have a hire car? If you do, you will save money on food by purchasing it in other quick style outlets, restaurants, and supermarkets. Plus you will have a greater variety of options to choose from.
4: Are you someone who is going to worry about the food budget for your holiday? If so, a Disney dining plan will give you piece of mind and alleviate worry about budgeting for food.
5: Are you happy to plan? Mathematically speaking the dining plan can have value if you are willing to plan it through. If you don’t want to plan and stick to it, a dining plan is not the right fit for your holiday experience.
Is any Disney Dining Plan worth it for UK guests?
Let’s face it, a dining plan is a big cost to add on to your holiday. There are alternatives to consider, which save money and meet your needs. Character dining is a unique Disney experience that cannot be replicated. If you want to invest in a holiday filled with character meal experiences buy the Disney Dining Plan. If you are only looking for one or two, the Dining Plan isn’t worth buying.
Financially, if you book character experiences for all of your table-service meals the Disney Dining Plan is worth it for UK guests. Planning and reserving your experiences 60 days before your holiday begins will be an essential part of getting value for money. After budgeting for the experience, you’re going to be planning.
Using table-service experiences such as Yak and Yeti, will not bring the same financial rewards and the dining plan will likely end up costing you more than paying as you go. You also need to bear in mind that tips will be expected at all table-service locations, and they are not included in the cost of your dining plan. You will have to budget this separately.
The quick service plans are not value for money for UK guests in our experience. Even if you are staying onsite, the only value they add is convenience and that can leave you out of pocket. Plus, if you don’t drink alcohol or follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, you will be out of pocket with this option.
Conclusion
Disney Dining Plans add value, but that value isn’t always financial. To answer the question is the Disney Dining Plan worth it, you’ll need to weigh-up the cost and the value of knowing your meals are paid for and that you don’t need to worry or budget. You’ll need to plan to add value with every option, and only the more expensive Disney Dining Plan will bring true value if you are investing in character dining experiences. Paying as you go may well be the best option for Brits. Overall, it depends on the holiday experience that you are looking for as to whether the dining plan will suit you.
